Google
is an American company that started as a simple search engine and
grew to a massive corporation with tentacles reaching all across the
technology arena into other unrelated fields. The size of the company
and money generated by Google and its advertising programs today make
it a clear target for watchdog groups that maintain Google is a
monopoly.

One watchdog group called Consumer Watchdog has
asked the DOJ this week to break
Google into smaller companies to prevent a monopoly
situation along the lines of Microsoft. John M. Simpson from Consumer
Watchdog is the person who made the request to the DOJ and he argues
that the DOJ's actions against Google's attempts at buying other
advertising firms and scanning books isn't enough to ensure the
search giant doesn't turn into a monopoly.

Simpson wrote in a
letter to the DOJ, "Google exerts monopoly power over Internet
searches, controlling 70 percent of the U.S. market. For most
Americans – indeed, for most people in the world – Google is the
gateway to the Internet. How it tweaks its proprietary search
algorithms can ensure a business's success or doom it to
failure."

The fact that search rankings on Google can
make or break a company is no theory. Each time Google algorithms
change retailers around the world moan over last rankings. Once a
retailer is off the first page of results the chances of searchers
clicking becomes much smaller.

EWeek rightfully
points out that the major flaw with Simpson's argument is that Google
doesn't force anyone to use its services; it just happens to be the
most popular service around. Google also lets users leave anytime
they want and take their data with them when they go. Another factor
that hurts Simpson's idea of a split up Google is the fact the DOJ
didn’t split up Microsoft when asked by advocates, and Microsoft
has been convicted of anti-competitive practices in the past. Google
has so far never been formally accused of anti-competitive practices,
though some major companies like AT&T
have accused Google of being anti-competitive.

Simpson
also alleges that Google purposefully tweaks its algorithms to keep
other businesses down and serve its own interests. Google has long
maintained that algorithm changes are nothing more than an attempt to
give users more accurate and useful search results.

Simpson
outlined his plans for breaking Google up in the letter sent to the
DOJ, "Gmail and its new social networking service, Buzz, could
be spun off as a separate entity as could YouTube, a Google
acquisition that we believe should have been denied at the time of
merger. Enterprise applications could be another separate
business."

A Google spokesperson told eWeek,
"We totally understand that with size and success comes
scrutiny. Although given their track record, even if we broke Google
in half tomorrow, Consumer Watchdog would probably insist that we
split halves into quarters."

Google is a huge company,
but if the company was broken up as suggested by Simpson many of the
services simply don’t generate the revenue needed to continue
operating. Google's massively successful advertising program
underwrites most of the free services like Gmail and Buzz.

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I think an argument for a Google monopoly could be made. Their advertisting is everywhere, and if your site isn't on the first page of Google search results, you're not going to get any visitors. Just because consumers aren't being directly charged for the products doesn't give them free reign.

I used a lot of google. As an academic, i have to. It's an immensely powerful tool, makes searching references and journal article easier. I’ll admit I never clicked on a google ads even once. But I do find their habit of saving search data (I assume they do because their directed ads is always on the spot for me – various offer to subscribe to multiple journal) very creepy. It gets even creepier in gmail. I think they must be using word search in my email since a lot of times ads in gmail is related to my own email subject. I am concern with what they would do to all those data from all over the world.

I propose DOJ force google (and all search site) to make it's search algorithm, ads algorithm and recorded data public. that way people could scrutinize them if their search has any non-neutral tendency towards some site.

I don't see this going anywhere, the DOJ didn't break up Microsoft and there was a much stronger case for a monopoly there. And the last time they broke up a major company, Ma Bell, it sat idly by while all the smaller firms bought each other up and re-assembled into the original company again.

without the names of course. just the IP. or, google should give the option of searching our ip for what kind of data they stored. that way we can raised objection over that data and make sure google deletes them. right now they just have to much power without any check and balance. we cry foul when goverment collect our data but when google is doing it and everything is OK? same goes to their search algorithm and ads algorithms it should be open to public so the public can check their neutrality.

your argument of government vs private company is silly, google doesn't use your tax dollars, why "should" they do anything we ask

and what is with all this talk of should, why "should" any private company do anything that would cost them without gain,

giving up their algorithms will just allow competitors to copy them, good luck with that. the average consumer has no knowledge therefor use of interpreting the algorithm or stored data, however there is a lot of use for negative or criminal activity, so i rather they keep all there stuff private.

back to the topic of should, you should find another search company if google doesn't fit your specifications.

Firstly, it only tracks systems with an attached google account, and you can clear all search data from the account settings page. No information is actually permanently stored. You can also opt to not have any data storage.Once you leave the google site all they do not have access to any information, the only thing they know is what you search and what you click. That is all.This is a matter of you using an open to the public yet privately owned and managed service. You have no obligation to use Google at all, ever. A monopoly is at its root: single seller. Google is one of many advertising firms and search engines.People need to remember that just because the company is big doesn't mean it is a monopoly. A monopoly requires it to be the one and only seller of a service or product. An example true monopoly is Apple, for reasons obvious.Also, google is not anti competitive. Search yahoo!. Search for products and look at the page results. You can use gmail with pretty much any software out there and even forward/recieve mail from other accounts.Basically, it is bull to call google a monopoly. They are a big business but they by no means are anything bad. Google is one of the most important things that has ever happened to the internet, and has massive global market penetration but all that considered it doesn't pull in more than 7B (compare to ExxonMobile at 20B or Wal-Mart at 13B).As far as search shaping, Google is actually pretty transparent. There are ways to engineer (on an independent non google related way) a page to be first, and they also use popularity and relevance algorithms for general searches.And no search algorithms shouldnt be public. That would be like saying microsoft should hand out the source code for windows or banks give out their security methodology white papers.

This is basically a response to everyone that thinks google is in the wrong. If you don't like them making money then go and make a search engine that does the job better.

their targeted ads is their bottom line. they would never stop collecting data. the only way is if someone forced them to. it's time we forced them to. sure everyone can argue if we don't like how they do things we should use other search engine, but targeted ads is the bottom line for other search engine too. all search engine should give option to search our ip so we can delete any data they save on us. it should be the law.